Reborn as a Succubus: Time To Live My Best Life!

"...and then he just announces we're partners like it's no big deal!" Melisa flung her hands up dramatically. "Like, 'Oh hey, here's the person who's hated your guts since day one, have fun spending the next six weeks together!' AGAIN!"

Melisa and the girls sat at the gazebo they'd conquered over the last year. As Melisa vented, other students made their way out of the academy.

Isabella lounged across one of the benches, her head resting in Armia's lap while her legs dangled off the edge. Raven sat next to Melisa, nodding every couple of seconds.

"Maybe he's hoping the sexual tension between you two will finally explode in a fit of passion." Isabella said.

"There is no sexual tension," Melisa replied flatly.

"There's definitely tension."

"NOT THE SEXY KIND!" Melisa clarified. "More like the 'she might stab me with a quill if I breathe wrong' kind."

"Could be both," Isabella mused, grinning up at Armia. "Right, Armia? Remember when you used to glare at me like you wanted to throttle me, and now look at us."

Armia's cheeks flushed dark enough to be visible beneath her scales.

"I'm just tired of pushing you off my lap."

"That's a form of love in itself," Isabella teased, reaching up to tap Armia's nose playfully.

"Yeah then I guess Jaylin really 'loves' Melisa."

"Not as much as she used to," Melisa pointed out, sighing. "We've upgraded from 'murderous glares' to merely 'contemptuous sneers.' That's progress. Hell, if anything, you know, the one she's really into is my mom."

"Wow."

Raven shifted slightly, drawing their attention.

"You're meeting her at the library later, right?"

"Unfortunately," Melisa sighed. "She insisted we start today, even though the project isn't due for ages. Typical Jaylin, always so—"

"Perfect? Dedicated? Passionate?" Isabella supplied, wriggling her brows.

"I was going to say 'uptight,' but sure, let's go with 'perfect.'" Melisa stood, stretching her arms above her head. "Anyway, I should probably head over there early. I want to do some personal research before she shows up and starts micromanaging everything. It's been a while since I've expanded my repertoire.

"Just be careful," Armia warned. "Don't push yourself too far."

"Don't worry about me, I know my limits... I think," Melisa winked, slinging her bag over her shoulder. "See you all back home for dinner?"

They murmured their agreement, and Melisa left the gazebo, already mentally mapping out her plan for the afternoon. First, personal research, then deal with Jaylin and their stupid project (briefly). Then, enjoy her mother's delicious cooking.

[At least our topic isn't terrible,] she consoled herself. [Light Magic's evolution throughout history? Could be worse.]

The library was nearly empty when Melisa arrived, most students still in classes or enjoying the late afternoon sunshine outside. Ms. Milly looked up from her desk as Melisa entered, her ancient eyes narrowing slightly.

"Ah, welcome, Miss Blackflame," the old woman croaked.

"Hi," Melisa replied cheerfully.

"Try not to make a mess this time."

"No promises!"

With a mock salute, Melisa headed toward the back of the library.

The restricted section was cordoned off by a simple rope barrier and a sign that read "AUTHORIZED STUDENTS ONLY." After saving the king's life, Melisa had been granted full access a little while ago. One of the few perks of her current notoriety.

She ducked under the rope and made her way to the furthest corner, where the oldest and dustiest tomes were kept. The more interesting texts were easy to spot—bound in deep crimson leather.

[Subtle branding there, ancient mages,] Melisa thought wryly as she pulled a particularly hefty volume from the shelf.

For the next hour, she lost herself in research, flipping through pages of increasingly obscure spells and theories. Her notebook quickly filled with scribbled notes and crude diagrams of spellsigns she wanted to try later.

One passage in particular caught her attention:

"It is said that wondrous, curious things happen when the veil between life and death grows thin. Ancient practitioners claimed to glimpse beyond this mortal realm, though such practices were deemed too dangerous by the Council of Arcane Authority and subsequently banned in the Year of the Withered Root."

[Glimpse beyond the mortal realm? Like... see dead people?]

Given that she was one (or, had been one) and she'd seen it wasn't particularly interesting, Melisa didn't have much interest in that but she still jotted it down. Maybe this magic could somehow let her peek back at Earth? That could be fun.

She was so engrossed in her reading that she nearly jumped out of her skin when she knocked a book off the table. It hit the floor with a heavy thud, sending up a cloud of dust that made her sneeze.

"Fuck," she muttered, bending to retrieve it. As she did, something caught her eye. A very... oddly placed bookshelf.

Melisa frowned, setting the book aside and moving closer to investigate. It was a massive oak monstrosity that probably hadn't been moved in centuries.

Melisa raised a brow.

[Wouldn't it be wild if pulling one of these books opened a secret passage?] she thought, running her fingers along the spines. [Just like in those cheesy adventure novels or whatever.]

She tested a few books, pulling them slightly forward then pushing them back in, feeling slightly ridiculous. Nothing happened, of course. This wasn't a story, it was a regular—if ancient—library.

But then her hand brushed against a small, unmarked volume wedged between two larger tomes. It was bound in what looked like plain brown leather, with no title or author on the spine.

When she tried to pull it out, it moved only halfway, then stuck with a soft click.

She instantly froze.

[No way. No fucking way.]

The bookshelf shuddered, then slowly, silently swung inward, revealing a narrow passageway beyond.

Melisa stood frozen, her mouth hanging open.

[This... this is not happening. Libraries don't have secret passages. That's not a thing that happens in real life.]

And yet, there it was—a dark corridor stretching away into shadows, its walls lined with what looked like softly glowing runes.

After a brief moment of indecision (approximately two seconds), Melisa's curiosity won out. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure no one was watching, then slipped into the passage. The bookshelf swung closed behind her with a soft thud.

"Illumina, car ei," she whispered, and a small globe of light materialized above her palm, illuminating the corridor.

It wasn't long, perhaps twenty paces, and it ended at a small, circular chamber no bigger than Melisa's dorm room. The walls were covered in more of those strange, glowing runes—similar to spellsigns but unlike any Melisa had seen before.

In the center of the chamber, atop a stone pedestal, sat a small object. Melisa approached cautiously, her light spell revealing it to be some sort of artifact—a disc about the size of her palm, made of what looked like burnished bronze or gold. It was inscribed with symbols that matched the ones on the walls.

[What the hell is this place? And what is this thing?]

She leaned closer, trying to decipher the symbols. They weren't in any language she recognized, though some of them reminded her vaguely of the ancient texts she'd been studying.

Without thinking, she reached out and picked up the disc. It was surprisingly light, almost weightless in her hand. She turned it over, examining it from all angles, but nothing happened. No magical surge, no sudden revelation, no ghostly apparition warning her to put it back.

Just a weird metal disc in a hidden room.

[Anticlimactic much?]

"What are you doing in here!?"

Melisa whirled around, nearly dropping the disc. Jaylin stood in the doorway of the chamber, her expression a mixture of irritation and disbelief.

"Jaylin! How did you—"

"I came to the library to start our project, only to find you weren't there," Jaylin said, her voice tight. "Ms. Milly said you'd gone to the restricted section, so I thought I'd check there. Then I saw the bookshelf closing behind you." She crossed her arms. "Care to explain why you're poking around in hidden rooms instead of working on our project?"

Melisa glanced at the disc in her hand, then back at Jaylin.

"... Preliminary research?"

"No."

"Fair enough," Melisa shrugged. "Look what I found, though!" She held up the disc. "Some kind of ancient artifact. No idea what it does, but it's cool, right?"

Jaylin's eyes widened slightly at the sight of the disc, her scholarly curiosity momentarily overriding her annoyance.

"Let me see that," she demanded, stepping forward and snatching it from Melisa's hand.

"Hey!"

Jaylin examined the disc with a frown.

"These markings... they're pre-Cataclysmic. Maybe even older." She ran her finger along one of the symbols. "This one looks like the ancient glyph for 'memory'.'"

"Wow, someone's been paying attention in Ancient Languages," Melisa said, impressed despite herself.

Jaylin shot her a withering look, then returned her attention to the disc.

"Whatever this is, it doesn't belong to you. It should be turned in to the academy authorities."

"Or," Melisa countered, plucking the disc back from Jaylin's hands, "we could bring it to Javir first."

"Aunt Javir? Why?"

"I wanna see if she knows anything about it." Melisa tucked the disc into her pocket. "Plus, she's less likely to ask awkward questions about how we found a secret room that probably wasn't supposed to be accessible to students."

Jaylin hesitated, clearly torn between her instinct to follow the rules and her curiosity about the disc.

"Fine," she said finally. "We'll take it to Aunt Javir. But first thing tomorrow—we still have a project to work on today."

Melisa grinned.

"Deal. Now, let's get out of here before Ms. Milly realizes we've discovered her secret hoard of forbidden treasures or whatever."